For the past six years, the staff and students at Bruce Monroe @ Park View Elementary School in Washington, D.C. have dedicated six weeks in the early fall to a schoolwide, dedicated focus on Central America. Their study culminates in a community showcase. 

On October 16, 2025, esteemed Salvadoran author Mario Bencastro paid a virtual visit to my class "Latino Communities in Metropolitan Washington, DC," at the University of California's Washington, D.C. campus (UCDC) campus as part of Teach Central America Week.

Maximo Alfaro approached teaching about Central America by integrating various cultural, historical, and geographical elements into a cohesive unit in his middle school classroom at District of Columbia International Public Charter School.

By Jody Peltason
Teaching Central America materials have been fantastic resources for my AP English Language and Composition course at Coolidge HS, which focuses on analyzing and writing about expository and persuasive texts.

In a country that is deeply divided, the staff at Bruce Monroe @ Park View Elementary School show how to bridge that gap with a schoolwide exploration of students’ history and culture — and a commitment to activism for justice.

Heber Diaz, a middle school ELA teacher, taught a lesson about the Civil War in El Salvador.

By Liora Valero
I teach arts-integrated Renaissance history to 5th graders with learning differences at the Lab School.

For the last three years, Cesarina Pierre has helped coordinate a Teach Central America Expo at Bruce-Monroe ES @ Park View (DCPS).

Roosevelt Senior High School (DCPS) kicked off Teach Central America Week 2022 with a visit from An Open Book Foundation and Shout Mouse Press.

Teaching for Change hosted the third annual Teach Central America Week from October 4-10, 2021.

By Cierra Kaler-Jones
“How many Central Americans can you name?” an 8th- grade teacher at Hardy Middle School in Washington, D.C. asked her advisory.

The Casa de la Cultura El Salvador brought Salvadoran author and artist Mario Bencastro to Washington, D.C. for a week of activities during Teach Central America Week 2019.

Thanks to support from the DCPS Language Acquisition Office, Teaching for Change offered free workshops on Central America during Latinx/Hispanic Heritage Month. Faye Colon, coordinator of teacher engagement and professional development, visited classrooms at Ballou High School, Dunbar High School, and Roosevelt Senior High School to lead our popular role play lesson, Introduction to Central America.

In July of 2013, Claire Sontag and Fabiana Duarte, two Washington, D.C. based dual-language teachers, traveled through Nicaragua, El Salvador, and Guatemala to learn about the history and culture of their students and their families.